Washing machine



May 21, 1940. B. L. LORENZEN WASHING MACHINE Filed Feb. 9, 19257 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. Jar/n1 l1 Wm B m ATTORNEYS Patented May i3 1@ NITED PATENT one-half to Charles Calif.

S. Frank, Los Angela Application February 9, 1937, Serial No. 124,823

9 Claims.

This invention relates to a washing machine, and while features of the invention could be employed with washing machines for any special purpose, the invention is particularly applicable in the construction of washing machines for clothes, or the like. Washing machines have been constructed involving the use of a rotary drum, or cage, in which the articles to be washed are placed. In some types of such machines the drum, or cage, is mounted to rotate on a vertical axis, and is rotated through the agency of an air jet projected against the bottom of the cage, so as to cause the cage to rotate, and thereby accelerate the movement of the wash water through the clothes. In such machines the bot: tom of the cage has been provided with perforations, so that the exhaust air, after causing the rotation of the drum, passes up through the wash water and through the clothes, or other articles within the drum. These perforations, however, do not have any lateral agitating efiect, and merely function in such a way as to cause bubbles of air to pass up through the wash water.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a construction for a washing machine of this type, which will operate in such a way that the air, or driving fluid, after passing from the impelling nozzle, will pass through the drum, or cage, in such a way as to cause a thorough agitation of the wash water, and particularly to produce a lateral movement of the same in a to and fro direction; that is to say, lateral with respect to the axis of rotation.

Washing machines, even of a type suitable for use in households, may hold a considerable quantity of water, and unless the washing compartment of the machine is located at a high level, its bottom is usually below the level of a kitchen sink, or laundry sink. In this case, it is necessary for the laundress, or laundryman, to drain the washing compartments into a bucket, or tub, and dump the same into the sink. One of the objects of the present invention is to provide s'mple means whereby the mechanism of the machine can be utilized to force the water out of the washing compartment through a hose, to a higher level than the washing compartment.

In the preferred construction of the machine embodying my invention, the cage carrying the clothes, rotates upon a vertical axis, and after washing the clothes they can be rinsed within the cage without removal. After the clothes have been rinsed, the cage is rotated at a high velocity, and will effect the drying of the clothes in a relatively short time. In order to accomplish this, it is necessary to rotate the cage at a relatively high velocity. In those types of machines where the washing compartment is at a considerable elevation below the floor, the rotation of the cage at a high velocity will develop considerable vibration and shaking of the entire machine. One of the objects of my invention is to overcome this objection, and to construct the machine in such a way that it can be stabilized by the use of water in the base of the machine when the cage is rotating at a high speed for drying the clothes.

A further object of the invention is to provide simple pneumatic means for passing water between the difierent compartments of the machine, as well as for forcing the water out of the compartments of the machine to a higher level whenever this is necessary.

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of this type, which can be operated to wash the clothes in a closed condition; that is to say, I provide means for receiving the moist hot air that passes up from the washing compartment, and for returning the same through the wash water. In this way the odors and hot water vapors. from the machine are reduced to a minimum; that is to say, they are prevented from passing into the atmosphere in the room; and after the washing operation has taken place, the wash water can, at will be forced out of the machine to a drain such as the sink.

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of this type with ,an air chamber from which the suds formed in the washing compartment are substantially excluded, and to provide means for connecting this air chamber with the intake of the blower that is employed for rotating the cage, and for forcing air through the cage to cause a thorough agitation of the clothes and wash water.

A further object of the invention is to improve the general construction of machines of this type so as to produce a compact machine of neat appearance having substantially the appearance of a cabinet, and provided at the front of the cabinet with the control hand-wheels, or dials, that control the operation of the machine.

A further object of the invention is to provide simple means for stopping the rotation of the cage.

Further objects of the invention will appear hereinafter.

The invention consists in the novel parts and combination of parts to be described hereinafter,

all of which contribute to produce an emcient washing machine.

A preferred embodiment o! the invention is described in the following specification. while the broad scopeoi the inventionis'pointed out in the appended'olaims. I I

In the drawingarr Fig. 1 is a tron chine embodying my invention'fand with some 01' the piping ot the. machine illustrated in dotted lines. This view indicates-the outlet hose connected to the machine, and broken away.

Fig. 2 is a plan of-the machine illustratedfln Fig. 1, certain parts being broken away andfindicating the location of apparatus on the interior, and also broken away to indicate-the general construction of the casing of the machine.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken in a plane that passes in a front and rear direction through the machine, and further illustrating its general construction and the location of the apparatus within the same.

Fig. 4 is a plan illustrating an embodiment of a smaller type of machine, in which substantially the entire interior of the casing is occupied by the cage. In this type of machine no lower water compartment is employed.

Fig. 5 is .a vertical section through the machine, further illustrating its construction, and illustrating the intake for the blower in section. In this view certain parts are broken away and shown in section.

Fig. 6 is a plan of the bottom of a cage, and illustrating a modification 'of the arrangement of perforations through the bottom, and the vanes, through the medium of which the cage is rotated by means of a fluid jet.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary vertical section through the cover of the casing, and particularly illustrating the manner in which the air chamber within the same connects to the intake that returns this air to the blower.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary horizontal section through the wall of the cage, and particularly illustrating the form of openings, or slits, that are formed in the wall of the cage near its bottom.

Before proceeding to a more detailed description of the invention, it should be stated that the drawings illustrate two models of a machine embodying my invention. In both models the cage has substantially the same construction, and is rotated in substantially the same way. The cage bottom in both cases is provided with means such as radial vanes cooperating with the propelling fluid jet, or air jet, to cause the cage to rotate for washing, rinsing, or drying the clothes. These perforations are located in such a way that as the cage rotates, air passes up alternately toward the outer wall or periphery of the cage, and toward the center of the cage. In other words, these perforations, instead of being distributed equidistant throughout the entire bottom as is usually the case in machines of this type, are located in such a way that the passing of the air up through the wash water will cause a lateral agitation or pulsation within the water itself. This causes the water to move in waves to and fro in a general radial direction, and greatly accelerates the operation of removing the dirt from the clothes. This action is far superior to that of mechanical agitators, which are used in washing machines.

In the preferred model of the machine illustrated in Figs. 1-3, the casing of the machine is elevation. oils washing mapreferably divided into three compartments: an upper water compartment, which is the washing compartment, and in which the cage for the articles to be washed is located; a bottom water compartment into which watermay be passed at will to stabilize the machine when it is rotating at a relatively high velocity, and operating to dry the clothes; an intermediate blower compartment located between the washing compartment and the base water compartment, in which the blower and control valves are located. In this model of the machine the blower is located below the level oi. the washing compartment, but a trap is provided to prevent water in the washing compartment from flowing into the blower. In both models of the machine the cover for the casing is preferably constructed with an air compartment, which is at a considerable height above the upper end of the cage, and from this compartment the air is taken and circulated through the blower and back through the washing compartment to propel the cage and agitate and pulsate the wash water therein. In the model illustrated in Figs. 1-3, means are provided for cooperating with the blower to enable the wash water to be forced out of the wash compartment to a drain, or sink; and means are also provided for controlling the flow of water in either direction between the washing compartment and the base compartment, which is utilized to stabilize the machine when being used for drying the clothes, at which time the cage is rotated at a relatively high velocity.

Referring more particularly to the parts, and

especially to Figs. 1-3 inclusive, the machine includes a casing I preferably composed of three sections: an upper section la in which the washing compartment 2 is located; a base section lb having a stabilizing water compartment 3; and an intermediate section lc where the blower compartment 4 is located together with the valves for controlling the machine, as will be described hereinafter. The casing is of general rectangular form, but in the upper or washing compartment 2 it has a liner SI of cylindrical form, the,

a shank having a step bearing l2 on the bottom wall I3 of the blower compartment I. This bearing I2 may consist of a ball l4 resting in a socket, and the stem or shank II is provided with a similar socket resting on the upper face of the ball. slight friction, and at the same time tends to center the axis of rotation of the cage and keep the same on the true geometrical axis of the cage. Ii desired, an upper bearing 15 may be provided, which may be of ball bearing type, and both the bearings may be housed in a tubular sleeve l6 arranged as shown.

In order to strengthen the machine particularly at the blower compartment 4, I may provide two spiders I1 and 18 at this point, the former of which may be formed as part of the lower wall, or bottom, of the section lc of the casing. The upper spider 18 may be formed separate from the plates 6 and l, and the arms of these spiders are preferably connected by short posts or stan- A bearing of this type operates with very Ill accuses chions l9. This construction greatly increases the rigidity of the casing of the machine.

The central tube, or sleeve 9, may be formed rigid with, or integral with the bottom of the cage 8, and this bottom 20 is raised slightly above the bottom 6 of the washing compartment, but provided with a downwardly projecting flange Zl, which flange connects with the lower edge of the cylindrical side wall 22 of the cage 8. In other words, the lower edge of this wall 22 extends down to a point where it almost touches the bottom plate 6 of the washing compartment. Preferably on the under side of the bottom, means is provided whereby a fluid jet can propel the cage and rotate it on its own vertical axis. For this purpose I prefer to provide the under side of the bottom 20 with a plurality of vanes 20*. These vanes preferably have the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 2; that is to say, they extend alternately in from the outer wall of the cage, and outwardly from theZinner wall. The bottom 20 is provided with a plurality of perforations 23 that are disposed circumferentially around the bottom of the cage as illustrated in Fig. 2, but the individual perforations alternate so that as the cage turns, the propelling jet that drives the cage will pass upwardly through the cage bottom in one instant toward the outer wall of the cage, and in the next instant toward the inner wall of the cage. In this way a very desirable pulsating and agitating effect is attained, causing the wash water to be thrown radially to and fro and in a lateral direction with respect to'the axis of rotation of the cage.

In order to rotate the cage through the agency of these vanes, or blades 20*, I prefer to provide a nozzle 2a, which extends in a general tangentialdirection with respect to the cage, and this nozzle passes upwardly through a bottom opening 25 in the plates 6 and I that form the bottom of the washing compartment. This nozzle inclines in an upward direction.

I prefer to propel the cage by means of an air jet projected through this nozzle, and for this purpose I provide a blower 26, which may be operated by an electric motor 27 in the blower compartment. The blower is mounted to rotate on a vertical axis, and air from the blower is delivered to a delivery neck 28 that preferably extends toward the forward wall of the casing and connects to a four-way valve 29 controlled by a dial, or hand-wheel 30 on the outside of the casing. When the cage is being rotated, this valve 3t admits air from the valve to a connection 3! extending to the right as indicated in Fig. 2, and this connection preferably includes a trap 32 consisting of an inverted U-shaped tube, the upper end 33 of which is located above the water level in the washing compartment, which is indicated by the dotted line 34. By reason of the presence of this trap, it Will be evident that no water in the washing compartment can ever reach the blower. Furthermore, when the blower is operating to blow air through the nozzle 24, it will be evident that the water in the washing compartment is constantly tending by gravity to how down into this nozzle. The air, however, blows up through this nozzle, thereby projecting a jet of air and water against the vanes to propel the cage in an anti-clockwise direction of rotation. The air, of course, under the head or bottom 20, passes up through the perforations 23, having the desirable pulsating effect already referred to in the Wash water and the clothes being washed. In order to -provide for circulation of the water through the clothes in a general radial direction, the wall 22 of the cage 8 is provided with a plurality of perforations at a low level, and these perforations are preferably in the form of slots 35, which are formed by slitting the metal in a vertical direction, and then slightly bending the edge of the material at the slit in an outward direction to form outwardly projecting curved lips 3%. These lips are located at the forward edges of the slits with respect to the direction of rotation, so that they assist in the outward flow of water from the cage through the cage wall.

In Fig. 3 I have illustrated two rows of these slots 35, but in practice there may be more or less of these slots, as desired.

In order to insure complete draining of the cage at all times, regardless of whether the machine is resting on a perfectly level floor, I prefer to provide the wall 22 of the cage at the upper face of the bottom 29 with a plurality of small drip perforations 3?.

The cage is preferably provided with a removable cover 38 consisting of an imperforate disc with a flange 39 at its edge, which seats down into the upper end of the cage. At this point and preferably attached to the lower edge of 'the flange 39, I provide a wire screen M, which confines the articles such as clothes, within the cage. At about the level of the screen ill and preferably above its level, the flange 39 and the upper end of the cage wall are provided with registering perforations ll. The hot water vapors passing up from the screen, pass out through these openings ll, and if any suds are present, such suds will be thrown out violently by the centrifugal action 1 through the openings ll against the inner face of the wall of the water compartment. This tends to keep down the level of the suds in the suds compartment 5, and assists in keeping the suds from passing upwardly into the intake of the cover, which will be presently described. After the articles in the cage have been washed, the soapy water can be ejected from the washing compartment, or it can be allowed to flow down into the bottom compartment 3. In order to enable the soapy wash water to be ejected from the washing compartment, and if desired, to a higher level than the bottom of the washing compartment, I provide an ejector tube 32 that leads over from the valve 29 in the blower compartment Q, and this tube has a nozzle 43 of reduced diameter at its forward end, that projects through the wall of a drain pipe or outlet pipe M that leads off from the washing compartment through the bottom of the same at the point (see Figs. 1 and 2). By setting the valve 29 so that the flow of air through the air nozzle 24 is shut off, and air admitted to the ejector tube 42, the air flowing through the nozzle 33 will produce a partial vacuum in the drain outlet i l and carry the water out through the open drain valve 66. This drain valve may connect with a hose 4? that will carry the water up to the level of a sink, or other elevated outlet.

When the machine is washing clothes or other articles, the casing is closed above by a cover 48, said cover being constructed with a substantially square upper sheet 69 that seats in the upper end of the outer casing, which is of square or rectangular form; and this cover is provided with an inner cover or bafiie plate 50 that is of cylindrical form, to fit into the upper end of the cylindrical inner shell or liner 5!, in which the cage rotates. These plates 39 and 5B are dished, or offset in opposite directions from each other, so

as to form an air chamber 52 between the same, and the plate 50 operates as a baille to keep suds out of this air chamber. For this purpose the plate 50 is provided with perforations 53 through which air can pass upwardly from the suds chamber 5. At one point, and preferably toward a corner of the casing, the baille plate 50 is provided with a downwardly inclined air intake 54, which seats against an opening at 55 in the liner, or cylindrical shell and at this opening 55 an air duct 56 (see Fig. 'I) is connected, which extends down and connects to the intake side of the blower; that is to say, toward its under side at the point 51 (see Fig. 3).

In order to increase the security oi the cage cover 38, and also to brace and center the same, I prefer to provide its under side with a downwardly extending sleeve 58 that slides down over-- the tubular center post 9 of the cage.

In order to enable the water in the washing compartment to be run down at will if desired, into the base compartment 3, I provide a drain pipe 59 (see Fig. 1) that has a water valve 60 connected into it and controlled by a dial, or

hand-wheel 9|, on the front wall of the casing.

The lower end of this pipe 59 delivers into a dished recess 62 in the bottom 63 of the base compartment 3. Where it is desired to economize the use of soap, and also to save time, it may be desired to wash a second batch of articles or clothing with the same wash water. Under these circumstances, the wash water can be run down into the base compartment 3 while the batch of articles being washed is rinsed oil and dried-by rotation of the cage, as will be described more fully hereinafter. The water usedfor rinsing can be ejected through the hose 41 by using the ejector nozzle 43.

If it is desired to force water out of the base compartment 3 to a higher level, this is accomplished through the medium of the valve wheel 30, which would be rotated to place the valve 29 in a position to permit the air to flow from the valve down through a vertical delivery tube 64 (see Fig. l) which delivers the air into the upper portion of the base compartment 3. This will develop air pressure above the level of the liquid in the base compartment, and enables this water to be forced out through a bottom drain outlet pipe 65 that passes through the side wall of the casing (see Fig. l) and connects to a drain valve 66 to which a hose 61 is attached, leading upwardly to the sink, or other drain connection.

Between the dials, or valve wheels 30 and 8|, an electric socket may be provided in the forward wall, for connecting an electric cord to deliver electric current to the electric motor 21 through an electric cord (not illustrated) within the casing.

Instead of employing an arrangement for the perforations 23 illustrated in Fig. 2, I may construct the bottom of the cage as illustrated in bottom plan in Fig. 6. In this case the radial vanes 68 are provided with circumferential dividing partitions 59 located about midway between the center and the peripheral wall of the bottom. In this way the space between alternate pockets between the vanes, is divided into an inner pocket H and an outer pocket 12. Each of these pockets is provided with a perforation 13. The air nozzle 14 from the blower is preferably located as indicated in Fig. 6, so that its delivery mouth is in line with the partition 69. Consequently, the air from the nozzle will be delivered into both the pockets H and 12, and this air will pass up through the perforations l3 and through the wash water in the washing compartment, causing a pulsation of the same toward the location of the dividing partition 89.

The intermediate air pockets I8 between the pockets that have the partition walls 69, are provided with perforations 11 respectively, in line with the walls 69, and hence when these pockets pass the nozzle, an air jet passes up through the same, located about midway between the central axis of the cage and its peripheral wall 10. The result of this is that the air will produce a pulsation outwardly from this point, and a pulsation inwardly.

After the articles being washed have been rinsed, the rinsing water is permitted to run down through the pipe 59-and water valve 60, so that it collects in the base compartment 3. In washing the clothes, the machine should run preferably at about 50 to 60 R. P. M. After the rinsing water has been collected in the bottom, there is, of course, very slight resistance to the rotation of the cage, and the air jet should then be turned on through the nozzle 24 to rotate the cage at a high velocity. This velocity may run from 900 to 1500 R. P. M. While the clothes are being dried in the cage in this way, the cover 48 of the machine should be removed so as to permit the relatively dry air from the room to flow in through the intake duct 56 and through the blower. With 'a high speed such as may be attained with this cage, the clothes will become dry enough to iron in a very short time. The cage is preferably provided with some suitable means for stopping it, as otherwise it would rotate for a long time after shutting off the driving jet through the nozzle 24. If desired, an ordinary brake could be used for this purpose, but as such a brake would complicate the construction, I prefer to accomplish the arresting of the rotation of the cage by having the inner end of the drain outlet 44 bent around so that it forms a reversing nozzle 18 extending in a general tangential direction, and opposed to the forward direction of movement of the cage; In order to arrest the cage, the valve 29 will be rotated into a position to close oil the air flowing through the nozzle 24 and admit the air through the ejector tube 42. At the same time, the valve 46 is closed. As the ejected air cannot escape through the valve 46, it will back up in the pipe 44 and will flow out through the reverse nozzle 18 against the vanes, and this will quickly stop the rotation of the cage.

One of the advantages of my machine is that the presence of the water in the base compartment 3 very greatly stabilizes the casing, and reduces its vibration, although the cage may be running at as high a speed as 1500 R. P. M. Without such a stabilizing effect it would be necessary to secure the legs of the casing to the floor, and even then the vibration would be very considerable. The water not only operates by reason of its weight to stabilize the machine, but also due to its nature, it tends to absorb vibrations and reduce the vibration of the entire casing to a minimum. Another advantage of my machine is that the blower compartment is provided in the casing between the base compartment 3 and the washing compartment. This makes a very compact neat construction, and facilitates a simple cabinet-like design for the casing.

In Figs. 4 and 5 I illustrate a model of my machine, which is of simpler construction, in that it omits the lower compartment 3 and also the blower compartment. In this type of machine the blower i9 is located above the water level of the machine, and delivers to a down pipe 86 that extends under the bottom 8| of the casing 82 where the air is delivered through an upwardly extending nozzle 83 (see Fig. 4) in a direction that is generally tangential to the direction of rotation of the cage 84. The cage bottom 85 is provided with vanes 86 and perforations Bl preferably arranged similar to the arrangement of perforations illustrated in Fig. 2. The blower has an intake neck 88 that connects to an intake connection 89 that leads the air down from the air compartment 90 on the interior of the casing cover 99.

In other respects the construction of the cage is substantially the same as that illustrated in Figs. 1-3, except that the cage bottom 85 has a substantially conical seat face 92 that seats on a conical neck 93 at the lower end of an inner tube 96 mounted for rotation on bearings 95 on a. central post or stanchion 96 that is stepped by means of its threaded lower end 9i into the bottom 85. The upper end of the outer tube 9 3 has an inwardly projecting flange 98, which has a central opening 99 to receive a center boss lflfl that projects up from a head it! fixed to tube t l above the upper bearing 95. The cage cover E92 is provided with a center plate 803 through which a screw HM extends, that carries a clamping collar me that rests against the flange 98 when the cage cover it)? is closed. This screw MM is, of course, threaded through the center plate )3, and may be secured in any desired position by a wing nut Hi6 that operates as a check nut. The bottom 8! includes a spider Ill! supported on suitable legs 508 that hold the lower edge of the casing above the floor level.

This model of the machine is so light that it can be readily handled without being provided with rollers, but the other type of machine illustrated in Figs. 1-3 is preferably mounted on rollers B9 to facilitate its movement on the floor.

It is understood that the embodiment of the invention described herein is only one of the many embodiments this invention may take, and I do not wish to be limited in the practice of the invention, nor in the claims, to the particular embodiment set forth.

What I claim is:

1. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing, a cage for the articles to be washed, rotatably mounted in the casing, said cage having a head with propeller vanes, means for directing an impelling fluid towardthe head and against the vanes in a direction to rotate the cage, said head having perforations spaced circumferentially around the head, the individual perforations being located alternately toward the periphery of the head and toward the center of the head so that as the impelling fluid passes in through the wash water within the cage it causes agitation thereof to and fro in a lateral direction with respect to the axis of rotation of the cage.

2. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing, a cage for the articles to be washed, mounted to rotate on a vertical axis within the casing, said cage having a bottom head with propeller vanes on its under side, means for directing an impelling air jet toward the head and against the vanes in a direction to rotate the cage, said head having perforations spaced circumferentially around the same, the individual perforations being located alternately toward the periphery of the head and toward the center of the head so that as the air passes in through the wash water within the cage it causes agitation thereof to and fro in a general horizontal direction and lateral to the axis of rotation of the cage.

3. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing having an upper water compartment and a lower water compartment at the base of the casing, and having a blower compartment between the two water compartments, a cage mounted to rotate on a substantially vertical axis in the upper water compartment, a blower within the blower compartment, said cage having a bottom with perforations and with propeller vanes, means for directing a jet of air from the blower against the said bottom and vanes in a direction to rotate the cage and permit the air to pass up through the said perforations, a water duct for permitting water from the upper compartment to descend to the lower compartment, and includinga valve for controlling flow through the same, a drain pipe for the lower compartment having an inlet near the bottom of the lower compartment, and valve means for shutting off flow of air from the blower to the cage, and for directing air from the blower into the upper part of the lower water chamber to develop pressure therein, and therebyforce the water through the said outlet pipe from the lower water chamber, to deliver the same at a higher level than the lower water compartment.

4. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing having an upper Water compartment and a lower water compartment at the base of the casing, and having a blower compartment between the two water compartments, a cage mounted to rotate on a substantially vertical axis in the upper water compartment, a blower within the blower compartment, said cage having a bottom with perforations and with propeller vanes, means for directing a jet of air from the blower against the said bottom and vanes in a direction to rotate the cage and permit the air to pass up through the said perforations, a drain outlet for the upper compartment with a valve for controlling flow through the same, an ejector pipe for leading air to the said drain outlet for ejecting water through the same from the upper water compartment, and valve means for closing off the flow of air from the blower to the cage and for diverting the air from the blower into the lower compartment to deliver water to the upper compartment at a higher level than the lower compartment.

5. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing having an upper water compartment in which the clothes are washed, and having a lower water compartment at the base of the casing, an air-impelling device with means for leading air from the same into the washing compartment to agitate the wash water, and valve means for shutting off the flow of the air to the washing compartment and directing the same into the upper part of the lower water compartment to develop pressure on the water therein, and means for directing water from the lower compartment up into the washing compartment.

6. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing having an upper water compartment and a lower water compartment at the base of the casing, and having a blower compartmentbetween the two water compartments, a cage mounted to rotate on a substantially vertical axis in the upper water compartment, a blower within the blower compartment, said cage having a bottom with perforations and with propeller vanes, means for directing a jet of air from the blower against the said bottom and vanes in a direction to rotate the cage and permit the air to pass up through the said perforations, a water pipe opening communication from the bottom of the upper water compartment to a point near the bottom of the lower water compartment, and an air valve for closing of! flow of air from the blower to the cage, and for directlng air into the upper portion oi the lower water compartment to force water out of the lower compartment up into the upper water compartment.

7. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing, a cage for the articles to be washed. mounted to rotate on a vertical axis within the casing, a blower, means for directing an air jet from the blower onto the cage to rotate the same and pass upwardly through the water in the cage, said casing extending up a considerable distance above the upper end of the case so as to form a suds compartment therein, a cage cover having an imperiorate disc and having a flange extending down into the upper end of the cage, a screen carried by the said flange, the wall of said cage having perforations adjacent the said cage cover to permit air to pass outwardly above the said screen, a casing cover having a baflle plate spaced therebelow to form an air chamber, said baiile plate having perforations opening communication between the air chamber and the suds chamber, and means for conducting air from the said air chamber to the intake of the blower.

8. In a washing machine, the combination of a casing, a cage for the articles to be washed, mounted to rotate on a vertical axis within the casing, a blower, means for directing an air Jet from the blower onto the cage to rotate the same and pass upwardly through the water in the cage, said casing extending up a considerable distance above the upper end of the cage so as to form a suds compartment therein, a cage cover having an imperiorate disc and having a flange extending down into the upper end of the cage, a screen carried by the said flange, the. wall of said cage having perforations adjacent the said cage cover to permit air to pass outwardly above the said screen, a casing cover having a bailie plate spaced therebelow to form an air chamber, said baifle plate having perforations opening communication between the air chamber and the suds chamber, an air outlet from said air chamber carried by the under side of said bailie plate, said casing having a duct therein for conducting air from the said air outlet 01' the casing cover to the inlet side of the blower.

9. In a washing machine, the combination of an upright casing, a cage for the articles to be washed mounted to rotate on a vertical axis within the casing, said casing having a water compartment in which the cage revolves, said cage bottom having impeller vanes therein, means for directing fluid against the vanes to effect the rotation oi the cage in a forward direction, a drain outlet through the bottom of the water compartment and having a water valve, means located between the water compartment and the drain valve for impelling a fluid jet in an outward direction within the said drain outlet to suck water from the water compartment and deliver the same at a higher level, and a second valve for shutting oi! the fluid flow that rotates the cage in a forward direction and for directing fluid into the said outlet while the water valve is closed, thereby enabling the fluid projected into the outlet to back up in the outlet and flow in a. reverse direction back through the outlet and against the said vanes of said bottom, the outlet at said bottom extending in a general tangential direction to oppose the forward direction of rotation of the cage, and aflording means for arresting the same.

BEN L. LORENZEN. 

